Achieving a transparent, actionable framework for public-private partnerships for food and nutrition research.

Officers and other representatives of more than a dozen food-, nutrition-, and health-related scientific societies and organizations, food industry scientists, and staff of the USDA, the CDC, the Food and Drug Administration, and the NIH convened on 8 December 2014 in Washington, DC, to reach a consensus among individuals participating on guiding principles for the development of research-oriented, food- and nutrition-related public-private partnerships. During the daylong working meeting, participants discussed and revised 12 previously published guidelines to ensure integrity in the conduct of food and nutrition research collaborations among public, nonprofit, and private sectors. They agreed to reconvene periodically to reassess the public-private partnership principles. This article presents the guiding principles and potential benefits, outlines key discussion points, and articulates points of agreement and reservation.

Ebola virus outbreak 2014: clinical review for emergency physicians.

The 2014 Ebola outbreak in West Africa is the largest in history. Ebola viral disease is a severe and fatal illness characterized by a nonspecific viral syndrome followed by fulminant septic shock and coagulopathy. Despite ongoing efforts directed at experimental treatments and vaccine development, current medical management of Ebola viral disease is largely limited to supportive therapy, thus making early case identification and immediate implementation of appropriate control measures critical. Because a case of Ebola viral disease was confirmed in the United States on September 30, 2014, emergency medicine providers should be knowledgeable about it for a number of reasons: we are being called on to answer questions about Ebola and allay public fears, we are likely to be first to encounter an infected patient, and there are increasing numbers of US emergency physicians working in Africa who risk coming in direct contact with the disease. This article seeks to provide emergency physicians with the essential and up-to-date information required to identify, evaluate, and manage Ebola viral disease and to join global efforts to contain the current outbreak.

Food and Nutrition Board update: What do SNAP allotments, physical fitness, and obesity prevention have in common?

The Institute of Medicine's Food and Nutrition Board had a productive year, with important expert committee reports on the Supplemental Food Assistance Program, physical fitness, and accelerating obesity prevention efforts that provided grounding for dietary guidance and nutrition policies and programs. This summary describes Food and Nutrition Board activities, including current thinking on dietary reference intakes. The summary also highlights consensus reports on defining and measuring Supplemental Food Assistance Program benefit adequacy and on physical fitness and health outcomes in youth. In addition, current and new activities related to obesity prevention and care are addressed. What do these activities have in common? All adhere to the Institute of Medicine report model by filling gaps and by being analytical, evidence-based, and challenging.

Perspectives and progress on upper levels of intake in the United States.

In the US, recognition of the appropriateness of including an upper level of intake estimate among reference values for nutrient substances was made in 1994 when the Food and Nutrition Board of the Institute of Medicine (IOM) specified the inclusion of an "upper safe" level among its proposed reference points for intake of nutrients and food components. By 1998, a group convened by the IOM had established a risk assessment model for establishing upper intake levels for nutrients, eventually termed the tolerable upper intake levels (UL). A risk assessment framework (i.e., a scientific undertaking intended to characterize the nature and likelihood of harm resulting from human exposure to agents in the environment), as developed in other fields of study, was a logical fit for application to nutrients. But importantly, whereas risk assessment requires that information be organized in specific ways, it does not require specific scientific evaluation methods. Rather, it makes transparent and documents the decision-making that occurs given the available data and the related uncertainties. During the 1990s and beyond, the various IOM committees charged with developing UL for a range of nutrients utilized the risk assessment framework, making modifications and adjustments as dictated by the data. This experience informed the general organizational process for establishing UL but also underscored the dearth of data. For many reasons, undertaking scientific research and obtaining data about the effects of excessive intake have been challenging. It is time to consider creative and focused strategies for modeling, simulating, and otherwise studying the effects of excessive intake of nutrient substances.

Well differentiated thyroid carcinoma: current treatment.

OPINION STATEMENT: Well differentiated thyroid carcinoma (WDTC) is a relatively common malignancy accounting for an estimated 37,000 thousand cases in the United States in 2009 [1]. WDTC also has a generally high 5 year survival rate that correlates with age. Papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC) greater than 1 cm is best managed by total thyroidectomy. Thyroid lobectomy and isthmusectomy may be adequate for unifocal PTC less than 1 cm in patients without negative prognostic factors. Central compartment and possible lateral neck dissections should be performed when nodal metastases are present in the respective nodal basins. Post-operatively, radioactive iodine ablation with (131)I followed by thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) suppression is indicated in certain patients to improve locoregional control and reduce recurrence.

The evolution of educational information systems and nurse faculty roles.

Institutions of higher education are purchasing and/or designing sophisticated administrative information systems to manage such functions as the application, admissions, and registration process, grants management, student records, and classroom scheduling. Although faculty also manage large amounts of data, few automated systems have been created to help faculty improve teaching and learning through the management of information related to individual students, the curriculum, educational programs, and program evaluation. This article highlights the potential benefits that comprehensive educational information systems offer nurse faculty.

Dietary Reference Intakes: development and uses for assessment of micronutrient status of women--a global perspective.

This paper reviews the process of developing the Dietary Reference Intakes (DRIs) and provides a synopsis of the micronutrient status of women worldwide. At a 1993 symposium held by the Food and Nutrition Board (FNB) of the Institute of Medicine (IOM), it was decided that the Recommended Dietary Allowances (RDAs) would be replaced by the DRIs, which would address several issues that the RDAs did not, including chronic disease risk reduction, upper levels for nutrients where toxicity data existed, and the possible health benefits of some food components that did not meet the traditional definition of a nutrient. Another important distinction is that because the DRIs are comprised of 4 reference values -the Estimated Average Requirement (EAR), RDA, Adequate Intake (AI), and a tolerable Upper Level (UL) -and not a single reference value like the previous RDAs, they could be used to differentiate planning from diagnosis or assessment. The latest DRIs and nutrient intakes are shown for iron, zinc, calcium, Vitamin A and folate status in women in the United States. Data on the micronutrient status of women globally are much more limited. Summary statistics on iron deficiency anemia, night blindness, and risk of zinc deficiency are summarized.